Letters for Feb. 9

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The plan of the Buffalo Fan Alliance to sell stock that could be used to help a buyer acquire the Buffalo Bills franchise or help with stadium renovations is a waste of time and money.

There is only one surefire way to keep the Bills team in Buffalo forever and that is to nullify the rule that the league has against community ownership.

Yes, Green Bay is community owned but the league slammed the door shut on any other franchises taking that step. And they get away with it because Congress years ago granted the NFL exemption from anti-trust laws.

What Congress giveth, Congress can taketh. If the fan alliance and other well-meaning groups around the country put pressure on their representatives in Washington to make the NFL operate within trust laws as every other business does, our problem is solved.

Not only would the league as a whole be permitted to have community ownership but the TV blackout rule would also vanish.

To get Congress to take such a step will be an uphill battle. The NFL has been very good at political campaign contributions and other perks.

But Congress, with all its faults, is excellent at counting. Millions of fans versus 31 individual team owners would be no contest.

So let’s hope our fan alliance uses their energy instead to encourage local fan groups at every other team location in the nation to back congress taking away the NFL’s anti-trust exemptions. If we are successful at that, Bills fans can join Green Bay in a drive for community ownership.

Herb Bertram

Orchard Park

Salary cap games provide many options

The minimum salary cap next year is $53 million with Miller, Moulson, Ott, Tallinder all being unrestricted free agents next year, the Sabres will be at $31 million.

I would buy out Ville Leino or trade him for a bag of pucks. That drops us down to $27 million. Then I would ask Miller, Moulson, Ott if they really want to stay here. If yes, in the words of Pat LaFontaine, trust comes in to play. I would trade all of them. Miller and Moulson should each be worth a first-round pick or more. Ott and Tallinder no worse than a second.

I’d be giving them all a shot at the Stanley Cup this year while adding assets to the team.

Then I would try to resign Miller (6 years, $40 million), Moulson (4 years, $16 million), Ott (3 years, $11 million). I would sign Paul Stastny (6 years, $42 million). I would then extend both Stafford and Ennis.

That would put us at around $53 million.

Bruce Wojcik

Buffalo

This Super Bowl not one for the books

Seattle really subdued the mistake-prone Broncos in a not-so-memorable game. The most exciting part came pregame, with Joe Namath flipping the coin too soon. Dull. Boring.

Not to Seattle, though.

A game that lends credence to the fact that the Seahawks were just that. Hawks for the ball. A safety on the first play of the game put that in the record books and showed unfortunately the ill-preparedness of Denver’s high-flying offense that didn’t provide many high fives. Peyton Manning was Oh-MIA.

Safety Malcolm Smith of Seattle’s defense got most valuable player but actually it should have gone to the entire defensive unit of Seattle. Hope the Buffalo Bills took notice of how a defense can be really effective.

Paul DiVito

Amherst

Send comments to Sports Talk, The Buffalo News, One News Plaza, P.O. Box 100, Buffalo, N.Y. 14240. Letters may also be sent via fax to 849-4587 or email to sports@buffnews.com. Letters should be limited to 250 words and are subject to editing. Include name, hometown and a phone number for verification.